Living Safe in a Processed World

You know how all the cookbooks and recipes give a cooking time of under an hour for chicken pieces? Well, if you follow them, you are really missing out. The chef where I work fixes the best chicken I’ve ever tasted. I asked her for her secret, and this is how she taught me to cook chicken. Turns out, the secret ingredient is time.

Buy your chicken. It should have bones and skin. These things add flavor. I like the dark meat, so I buy thighs, but I’m sure this will work with breasts or a whole chicken cut up into pieces.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Place your chicken in a casserole or cookie sheet with sides. I used my stoneware bar tray from The Pampered Chef, which is marvelous for just about everything. Whatever you use, it’s got to have sides. This is going to be really juicy.

Drizzle some olive oil over the chicken. You really don’t need to use much, just enough to moisten it.

Season the chicken with whatever you want to use. I used Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper mix because it has no sugar in it, unlike all the other lemon peppers out there. I also used a little bit of salt.

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake the chicken for 2 to 3 hours covered. If it happens to bake a bit longer, do not worry. Long is the key to the deliciousness factor.

Remove the foil and bake for another 10 to 20 minutes or so to crisp the skin.

Take it out, let it cool enough so that you won’t burn your mouth, and enjoy!

When you try this, be aware that you may have to send your family out to a movie because they are going to want to eat the chicken before the cooking is complete. It smells that good. And it will taste even better than it smells.

I’ve developed a list of brands and food items that are safe for me to eat. I usually still check the label before chucking it into my cart, but I got lazy. I found myself at home with a container of So Delicious Mint Chocolate Chip Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert, one of my favorites, that I could not eat. In the past, the chocolate has been unsweetened, but now, they are using cane sugar sweetened chocolate. Giving that treat away was a painful lesson to me. Don’t take brands for granted. Always, always, always check the label!

This is the original recipe is from Lance Cpl. Jaynine Goodroe as seen in Command of the Grill: A Salute to Steak (Weber, $10 paperback), that will benefit Marines wounded or killed in the line of duty and their families.

In a large plastic resealable plastic bag set inside a large bowl, combine the marinade ingredients. Add the steaks to the bag. Press the air out of the bag and seal tightly. Turn the bag several times to distribute the marinade, place the bag back in the bowl, and marinate for 30 to 60 minutes.

Remove the steaks from the bag and let the excess liquid drip off. Discard the marinade. Let the steaks stand at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before grilling.

Just before grilling, season both sides of each steak with the garlic salt.

With the lid closed, grill the steaks over direct high heat (500 to 550 degrees Fahrenheit) until cooked to desired doneness, 6 to 8 minutes for medium-rare, turning once. (If flare-ups occur, move the steaks temporarily over indirect high heat.)

Remove from the grill and let rest for 2 to 3 minutes. Serve warm.

Makes 4 servings.

My Notes:

I forgot to get a lemon at the store, so instead of fresh lemon juice, I used lime juice from a bottle. Still delicious.

I had plenty of marinade for 8 steaks. I didn’t put them in a bowl. Just flat on the refrigerator shelf in the ziplock.

I am afraid of my grill, so I did broiled mine in the oven at 450 degrees F for 8 minutes on each side. Still delicious.

Be aware that some sugar is used to start the fermentation process of the wine. I got the cheapest, driest red wine I could get my hands on and didn’t have any reaction. To be absolutely sure, however, you could substitute grape juice, cherry juice, apple cider, or even balsamic vinegar for the wine.

The Gluten Free Goddess hits another home run with this delicious soup. I made a big batch of this and made everyone at work jealous with its aroma in the lunch room. Look at the pictures and you’ll be drooling. Check it out at her blog, The Gluten Free Goddess.

I used rice milk rather than coconut milk and it turned out fine. I also left it chunkier than she did. I blended only about half of the recipe, because soup is more satisfying to me if it’s chunky enough to chew.

When I was told that I couldn’t have sugar anymore, I thought I would miss chocolate most of all. Then I found the sugar-free chocolate. It’s not the same, but it’s definitely in the ballpark. So as time has passed, what I’ve found that what I really miss is barbecue. I found a barbecue sauce that doesn’t have any sugar or molasses in it (Tony Roma’s Original Flavor), and that’s when I realized that what I’m missing is that dark molasses taste. I haven’t figured out how to substitute for that, so I’ve pretty much given up on barbecue.

But it’s the 4th of July, and what is the 4th without throwing something on the grill. So, I have adapted this from a recipe I saw in a Good Housekeeping while having a pedicure. My toes are pretty and I have a new recipe for yummy food. Perfect!

Mustard Chicken

1/2 c. whole grain mustard

1/2 c. dijon mustard

1/2 c. apple juice

1/4 c. white vinegar

2 T. olive oil

10 pounds bone in chicken (I used thighs)

2 med yellow onions cut in 1/2″ wedges

2 med red onions cut in 1/2″ wedges

Directions

Mix the mustard and liquid ingredients in a plastic bowl.

Put your chicken and onion wedges in two large ziplock bags. Pour the marinade over them and close the bags. Make sure the marinade covers the chicken thoroughly. Place in refrigerator and marinate for 3 to 8 hours.

Grill chicken pieces, turning regularly for 30 to 40 minutes until the juices run clear. Add the onions to the grill for the last 15 minutes of grilling.

I also did some in the oven. 50 minutes at 350 degrees followed by 5-10 minutes on broil to crisp the skin.

I didn’t realize it had almost been a year since posting here. I’ll try to be more regular.

I’ve been reading old cookbooks on my Amazon Kindle, and here is something I learned about cooking fish:

Court-Bouillon

This preparation gives boiled fish a better flavor than cooking in clear water does. Many cooks use wine in it, but there is no necessity for it. Four quarts of water, one onion, one slice of carrot, two cloves, two table-spoonfuls of salt, one teaspoonful of pepper, one table-spoonful of vinegar, the juice of half a lemon and a bouquet of sweet herbs are used. Tie the onion, carrot, cloves and herbs in a piece of muslin, and put in the water with the other ingredients. Cover, and boil slowly for one hour. Then put in the fish and cook as directed for plain boiling.

How to boil fish

Any fresh fish weighing between four and six pounds should be first washed in cold water and then put into boiling water enough to cover it, and containing one table-spoonful of salt. Simmer gently thirty minutes; then take up. There should be a gentle bubbling of the water, and nothing more, all the time the fish is in it. A fish weighing more than six pounds should cook five minutes longer for every additional two pounds.

I have to give a shout out to the Gluten Free Goddess. She has a fabulous site with lots of great recipes and mouthwatering pictures. I made this recipe on a recent trip to my parents house. My mother loved it; my dad felt it lacked spicing. I loved the fresh, clean taste of the vegetables. I might have cooked the rice in some stock to boost the flavor, but I would have left the rest of it alone. Head over there for the recipe and let me know what you think! Garlicky Shrimp and Spinach Bake from The Gluten Free Goddess.